Monolithic floor structure with air passages



. Dec1,1970 .E,G RIT 3,543,458

MONOLITHIC FLOOR STRUCTURE WITH AIR PASSAGES Filed Dec. 27, 1967 3Sheets-Sheet 1 MONOLITHIC FLOOR STRUCTURE WITH AIR PASSAGES Filed Dec.27, 1967 K. E. GURITZ Dec. 1, 1970 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 MONOLITHIC FLOORSTRUCTURE WITH AIR PASSAGES K- E. GURITZ Dec. 1, 1970 3 Sheets-Sheet 3Filed Dec 27,

United States Patent 3,543,458 MONOLITHIC FLOOR STRUCTURE WITH AIRPASSAGES Kenneth E. Guritz, 570 Emerald Harbor Drive, Sarasota, Fla.33577 Filed Dec. 27, 1967, Ser. No. 693,800 Int. C]. 1304!) 1/16; F2041?17/04 US. Cl. 52-127 12 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE with closures,diffusers and collectors as required. The.

method of forming a pan-type floor having such integral service passagesis described.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to pan-type concretefloor construction, and more particularly, to an improved floor havingpassage means formed integrally in such floor in a simple expedientmanner.

Pan-type concrete floor construction is utilized extensively in largebuildings and particularly in multi-story buildings. Such floorscomprise a slab of concrete having a relatively smooth top surfacedefining a floor and a bottom surface provided with a plurality ofspaced and aligned cavities or recesses formed therein.

A pan-type floor is formed by pouring concrete over a plurality ofinverted pans arranged in a pattern and supported from beneath.Horizontal reinforcing rods and connecting stirrups are commonlyprovided to reinforce the concrete in such construction. After theconcrete has been poured and sets, the pans are removed. A principaladvantage of this type of floor construction is its high strength toweight ratio.

Electrical ducts and conduits having a relatively small cross-section(on the order of two inches in diameter or maximum vertical dimension)are often placed above the pans, and concrete poured thereover so as toincorporate such ducts or conduits within the floor. Later, electricalcables, telephone lines and the like may be drawn through such ducts orconduits.

Such in the floor installations may provide only a portion of the entireconduit requirement. In such instances other conduits are suspendedbelow the ceiling. Similarly, pipes and ducts for heating, ventilation,air conditioning and plumbing as well as light fixtures are similarlysuspended below the ceiling. These unsightly building services may behidden by a suspended ceiling. In this prior arrangement a substantialportion of the vertical distance between one floor and bottom of thenext floor is reserved for such services. The use of a suspended ceilingto hide the air ducts is inefficient in that the thickness of the flooris unnecessarily increased, and thereby the floor to ceiling height isreduced. Increase of floor to ceiling height to accommodate thesuspended ceiling structure increases building height, material cost,and overall construction costs.

An object of the present invention is to provide for building serviceswithin the normal thickness of pan-type floors.

A further object of this invention is to improve the structuralcharacteristics of pan-type floor construction.

A still further object of this invention is a method for Patented Dec.1, 1970 constructing pan-type floors having provisions for buildingservices within the thickness of the floor and having improvedstructural characteristics.

In accordance with one feature of this invention, passages ofsubstantial cross section are provided between selected cavities of apan-type floor.

In accordance with another feature of this invention, the selectedcavities of a pan-type floor constructed in accordance with thisinvention are selectively provided with novel closing members andlouvers for defining air passages for heating, ventilating and airconditioning.

In accordance with another feature of this invention, there is asubstantial reduction in the weight and cost of the structural joists ofa pan-type floor.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING An illustrative embodiment of the presentinvention is shown in the attached drawing wherein:

FIG. I is a bottom View of a portion of a wafile-type floor embodyingthe present invention;

FIG. 2 is a transverse cross-sectional view illustrating a portion of acompleted wafile-type concrete floor taken generally along line 22 ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating the fabrication of thewafile-type floor and showing removable molds in place between pairs ofadjacent pans;

FIG. 4 is a cross-section of the waflle-type floor during fabricationand illustrating the removable molds in place;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the bottom of a portion of a waflle-typefloor illustrating the cavities and passages defined after removal ofthe pans and the removable molds;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a pair of adjacent cup-shapedpans utilized to form cavities in the grid network of the floor;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view illustrating a mountingsupport for supporting and properly positioning reniforcing rod duringfabrication.

DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENT Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2,there is shown a portion of a floor or ceiling construction embodyingthe present invention. The illustrative fioor construction is of thewattle-type and is comprised of a slab of concrete 10 having a smoothtop 12 and a bottom having a plurality of grid sections or cavities 14defined therein. The illustrative wattle-type floor is one specificembodiment of a pan-type floor. The cavities 14 each have substantiallyflat to wall surfaces 1 and side wall surfaces 16 which convergeupwardly. In horizontal cross-section, the cavities 14, of theillustrative embodiment, square as shown in FIG. 1.

In selected side walls 16 openings 18 connect adjacent cavities 14. Thebottom of each cavity may be closed by a panel 20 so as to provide aclosed passageway wholly within the confines of the concrete floorconstruction. For example, the inlet 22 which is adapted to be connectedto a source of conditioned air connects to one end of a first passagewayin the floor 10 which includes interconnected cavities 14a-14g. The airflows through the passageway and is discharged through a supply grill 24in a selected panel 20 into an area to be conditioned. Air from the areato be treated enters a second passageway in the floor 10 through areturn grill 26 in another panel 20 and flows through cavities 14h-14lfor return through outlet 28 to the air treating system. Thus, supplyand return air passages are provided within the floor construction,without .the necessity for separate piping or ducting. Obviated is thenecessity for a false ceiling or a dropped ceiling.

A concrete floor constructed in accordance with the present invention islighter and contains less concrete than a. comparable conventionalconstruction.

The air passages so formed within the pan-type floor provide anefficient, low type impedance duct. This permits air to be moved atrelatively low velocities and in both heating and cooling thetemperature difference between the desired room temperature and theheating or cooling air may be maintained relatively low. Thus, aneflicient and comfortable heating and cooling system results.

The panels 20 are provided with peripheral flanges having an S-shaped orZ-shaped portion 29 and an end flange portion 30. The flange ends 30 areadapted to be secured to support nails 32 embedded in and extending fromthe floor construction by lock washers or like fasteners 34. As will beexplained more fully hereinafter, the support nails 32 are constructedand arranged so as to be retained in the floor construction duringfabrication thereof.

A decorative channel member 36 made from metal or a suitable plastic isadapted to be inserted between adjacent panels 20 to finish the ceilingor bottom of the floor construction and present an aestheticallypleasing appearance from below. Alternatively, a series oflongitudinally aligned decorative strips may be removed and a wall ordivider may be engaged at its upper end in the recesses defined betweenadjacent aligned panels 20. It is seen that the present inventionreadily lends itself to modern multi-story constructions where officewalls are changed and moved about. The decorative strips or channelmembers 36 are suitably secured in place by an adhesive, by a force fit,or by spring the sides of the channel member or strip into place betweenthe recessed flanges of the adjacent panels.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, there is illustrated a method of fabricatinga wattle-type floor in accordance with the present invention. A suitablewooden framework 40 is provided beneath the level of the anticipatedfloor or ceiling construction. It will be understood that in a multiplestory dwelling the term floor and ceiling may be used interchangeably,since the floor construction of the present invention would define theceiling of the story below as well as the floor of the story above. Theconstruction of this invention would provide the ceiling and roof of aone-story building structure.

Supported upon the wooden supports 40 are a plurality of like shallowcup-shaped pans 42, each of which has a peripheral flange 44 thereabout.The flanges 44 of adjacent pans ar supported in abutting relationship bythe wooden support members 40. In this illustrative embodiment the pans42 are arranged in rows longitudinally as well as transversely, so as tolater form a plurality of longitudinally and transversely alignedcavities in a floor construction, thereby producing what is called awatfle-type floor construction. It is a feature of the present inventionthat the pans 42 be retained in place on the wooden supports 40 by meansof the doubleheaded mounting nails 32. Suitably aflixed to selectedadjacent mounting nails 32 and supported thereon is a support member 46which is provided with a plurality of recesses 47, 48 and 49 therein forsuitably supporting reinforcing rods 50, 51 and 52 in desired spacedrelationship from one to another and form the adjacent pans 42. Thespecific number of rods employed is variable and dependent upon designconsideration. The specific form of support member shown merelyillustrates one form of the invention.

To create the voids or openings 18 in th downwardly depending sidewallsforming the cavities in the waflietype floor, removable molds 54 madefrom plastic or the like, for example, polyurethane foam, or the likematerial are disposed between adjacent pans 42 in closely fittingrelationship. Such removable molds 54 are sutficiently firm so as toretain their general form and close fitting relationship with the pans42. However, they being of plastic are deformable and destructible andtherefore capable of easy removal. To prevent the floating or accidentalmovement of these molds 54 when concrete is poured into place, anglebrackets 56 are provided. The anchor brackets 56 include end flanges 57and 58, which are adapted to be connected to adjacent pans by means of arivet 55 or the like, and an intermediate generally U-shaped portion 59,which is adapted to abut the top of a mold 54, so as to retain the mold54 in place during the pouring of the concrete. As aforenoted, the sidesof the pans 42 are somewhat tapered and converge generally upwardly. Themold 54 is of a desired cross-sectional shape to define the desiredpassage between the section of the floor and it is apparent that thepassage may have diiferent shapes, provided it is of adequate size topermit the desired flow of air, the placement of other services or thedesired joist weight reduction. If desired, conduit may be supported onthe pans in a conventional manner, such conduit would become embedded inthe floor and provide housing later for electric cable and for telephonelines.

After the concrete has been poured and has set, the wooden supportframework 40 and the pans 42 are removed, thereby exposing thewafile-type concrete floor, as shown, for example, in FIG. 5. To openand thereby provide the passages 18 between the adjacent cavities, andthereby form a passageway or passageways integrally in the floor 10,certain molds 54 are punched out or otherwise removed. It will beunderstood that all of the molds may be removed at a later date toprovide additional service capacity.

The cavities 14 are defined by longitudinal and transverseinterconnected joist members.

In FIG. 6, there is shown a pair of adjacent pan members 42 each havinga peripheral flange 44 thereabout. The outer face of the flanges lies ina plane which is substantially parallel to the plane of the top of thepan. The pans 42 are generally square in transverse cross section as isevident from FIG. 6.

In FIG. 7, there-is shown a detail of a mounting support for thereinforcing rods. The double-headed nails 32 not only retain the flanges44 of the pans 42 in desired adjacent abutting relationship on thewooden frame 40, but they also provide support for the support members46 to properly orient the reinforcing bars 50, 51, 52 with respect toeach other, to the adjacent pans and to the peripheral flanges ofadjacent pans. The bars are spaced from the flanges of the pans 42 andfrom the adjacent sides of the pans. This permits proper location of there inforcing bars 50, 51 and 52 within a completed joist arrangement ina waflie-type floor construction.

By the present invention, in the illustrative embodiment there has beenprovided a concrete floor construction having a plurality of passagesthrough the joists thereof. The passages are both transversely andlongitudinally aligned and the bottom of the cavities may be closed, soas to define integrally within the floor air passages for the supply ofconditioned air to areas to be treated and for the return of air from anarea to be conditioned to the air conditioning system or to the exhaust.It will be understood that mechanical plumbing and electric wiring mayalso be installed Within the passages. By the present construction, thedead load of the concrete has been minimized since the openings in thejoists remove many pounds of unnecessary concrete from the floorconstruction. It has been found that the floor construction is improvedby the removal of such concrete.

The creation of air passages in the concrete floor results in a concretefloor construction which has a relatively large thermal capacity. Whenthere is a requirement for heating, warm air will be supplied throughthe passageway within the concrete floor construction and the wallsthereof are warmed. The heat stored in the concrete creates a radianteffect. A similar effect results when cool air is supplied to thepassageways defined in the floor.

The ceiling provided with the floor construction of the presentinvention has an aesthetically pleasing look, since the entire exposedconcrete surface may be covered over by the panels 20, grills 24 and 26,light fixtures and by the decorative strips 36.

As shown in FIG. 1, the panels may be solid, or they may incorporategrills for supply and return air. It will be understood that lightingfixtures may be provided in selected cavities 14. The lighting fixturemay be substituted for a panel or alternately, the lighting fixture maybe recessed in the cavity and a suitable panel 20 which will permit thelight to reach the room may be provided in place of the decorative panel20. Further, the panels 20 may be made from acoustic materials forsoundproofing or may be modified so as to accommodate sprinkler heads orradio speakers as desired. The overall result of the floor constructionof the present invention is that the floor construction itself definesthe air passageways therewithin, and all of the mechanical componentsincluding pipes for plumbing and electrical equipment may likewise beaccommodated within the confines of the novel waffle-type floor.

While I have shown a presently preferred form of the invention, it willbe understood that the invention is not limited thereto, since it may beotherwise embodied within the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A pan-type concrete floor construction comprising: a substantiallyhorizontal concrete platform having a'floor surface and an undersurface; a monolithic grid comprising a plurality of sections formed ofconcrete joists continuously, integrally and downwardly depending fromsaid platform, each said grid section comprising a cavity having a topcomprising a portion of said under surface and downwardly extendingsides comprising surfaces of webs of said joists, the sides of selectedadjacent grid sections having horizontally elongated passages ofsubstantial cross section extending therebetween, said passages havingcurved horizontal ends and being vertically located wholly within theupper and lower boundaries of said joists so that both the upper andlower surfaces of said passages are spaced apart from and lie verticallybetween the upper and lower surfaces of said joists; and removable meansfor closing the open bottoms of said selected grid sections for formingat least one continuous passage in the floor construction.

2. A floor construction as in claim 1, wherein the passages are betweena plurality of aligned grid sections to define a continuous longitudinalpassage.

3. A floor construction as in claim 2, wherein at least one of saidselected grid sections is provided with a passage to an adjacent gridsection in transverse alignment with said longitudinal passage to definean air passage transverse to said longitudinal passage.

4. A floor construction as in claim 2, wherein at least two separatepassages are defined, one of said passages connected to a source ofconditioned air for supplying conditioned air to said passage, saidconditioned air being discharged from said one passage through a supplygrill into an area to be treated, said second passage having at leastone grid section thereof fitted with a return air grill for receivingair to be returned to said source of conditioned air.

5. A floor construction as in claim 1, further comprising studsprotruding from the formed floor construction in a set pattern, and saidmeans for closing said grid sections comprise panels adapted to besupported on said studs.

6. A floor constructing as in claim 5, wherein the panels are retainedon said studs by means of washer fasteners.

7. A floor construction as in claim 1, wherein support members arecarried on studs used to position forming pans during construction, saidsupport members supporting reinforcing rods and positioning them withrespect to one another and with respect to adjacent forming pans, saidstuds and said support members being retained in the floor constructionafter fabrication thereof.

8. A method of fabricating air passages in a pan-type concrete floorcomprising the steps of orienting and supporting cup-shaped pans in ahorizontal grid array, said pans each having a top surface, a bottomsurface and a plurality of side surfaces, positioning removable molds offirm but deformable material such as plastic and having at least a pairof end surfaces, a top surface and a bottom surface between respectiveadjacent pans in aligned relationship to one another with the endsurfaces of said molds being in close abutting relationship with theside surfaces of said respective adjacent pans, the top and bottomsurfaces of said molds being vertically spaced apart from and positionedvertically intermediate the top and bottom surfaces of said pans,retaining said molds in place, pouring concrete over and around saidmolds and pans, removing said pans from the hardened concrete to form asubstantially horizontal concrete platform comprising a floor surfaceand an under surface comprising aligned open-bottomed cavities,selectively removing said molds to form passage extending through thewalls between selected adjacent cavities.

9. The method of claim 8 including the steps of forming a pair ofseparate passages in the concrete floor, one passage for supplying airfrom a source of conditioned air to an area to be treated and the otherpassage for returning air from said area to be treated to said sourcefor reconditioning.

10. The method in accordance with claim 8 further comprising the step ofclosing the open bottoms of said selected adjacent cavities to define acontinuous passage for air within the floor.

11. A monolithic floor structure comprising: a platform having a flathorizontal top surface, a first group of continuous horizontal concretejoists substantially parallel to each other continuously, integrally anddownwardly depending from the bottom of said platform, a second group ofcontinuous horizontal concrete joists substantially parallel to eachother continuously, integrally and downwardly depending from the bottomof said platform, said joists of said first and said second groupsintersecting each other to form a horizontal open-bottomed integral gridof said joists, webs of said joists forming the sides of the sections ofsaid grid and the underside of said platform comprising the top of saidsections of said grid, the sides of selected adjacent grid sectionshaving horizontally elongated passages of substantial cross sectiontherebetween, the portions of said joists lying below the bottomsurfaces of said passages having embedded therein tension reinforcingbars and being subjected principally to tension forces.

12. A monolithic floor structure comprising: a platform having a flathorizontal top surface, a first group of continuous horizontal concretejoists substantially parallel to each other continuously, integrally anddownwardly depending from the bottom of said platform, a second group ofcontinuous horizontal concrete joists substandtially parallel to eachother continuously, integrally and downwardly depending from the bottomof said platform, said joists of said first and said second groupsintersecting each other to form a horizontal open-bottomed integral gridof said joists, webs of said joists forming the sides of the sections ofsaid grid and the underside of said platform comprising the top of saidsections of said grid, the sides of adjacent grid sections havinghorizontally elongated passages of substantial cross section extendingtherebetween, and a plurality of closing means of firm but deformablematerial having outside dimensions corresponding roughly to thedimensions of said passages positioned in selected corresponding ones ofsaid passages to form at least one continuous air passage within thethickness of said joists.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Levine 264-31 Stark 52744 XBremer 52-381 Warren 52303 X Leonard 52-679 8 1,338,567 4/1920 Flynn 523s1X 2,093,401 9/1937 Carilli 249-30 2,611,261 9/1952 Preston 52 220 XFOREIGN PATENTS 5 361,384 5/1962 Switzerland.

ALFRED C. PERHAM, Primary Examiner l0 U.S. Cl. X.R.

